1. At Houston Rockets (April 5)
The Houston Rockets are the hottest and best team in the NBA, and MVP candidate James Harden leads them.
Usually, come April, teams who are at the top of their conference aren’t trying as hard to win games and begin resting their key players for the playoffs.
Not this season though. The Rockets want to show the NBA that they are the new kings of the West and want to finish with a better record than the Warriors. The Rockets will be playing competitive basketball the rest of the season.
This season, the Rockets have beaten the Blazers in both games played. The two teams will play in Portland on March 20 before this game.
Portland has two games left against the Rockets to try and get a win and not get swept in the season series. Going into Houston will be a tough challenge for the Blazers, and that will be the second game of a four-game road trip to close out the season for Portland.
Hopefully, by the time this game happens, the Western Conference playoff picture will be a little more clear, and we will know exactly how important this game is for Portland and Houston.
Next: 2017-18 Week 20 NBA Power Rankings
Regardless, having to travel to play the hottest team in the NBA at their building will be the toughest matchup for the Blazers to close out the season.